Archive for Education
October 9, 2007· Filed under Education
Today I chaperoned a field trip for my daughter’s 4th grade class at a local farm. I’ll admit that initially I was just not very excited about the idea of walking through the woods in 93 degree heat with 80 wound up 9 and 10 year olds, but in the end I am really glad I went.
Local agencies work together on this project which brings science and geography to life for local students. The outing was held at a local farm. There were 8 “classrooms” set up throughout the property. Each class started at a different classroom and professionals from the forestry department, department of agriculture, 4-H, and the local farm extension group each taught students for 20-30 minutes at a time on topics in their area of expertise.
The taxidermy specialist showed off animal bones and pelts while engaging the class to determine the animal based on the type of teeth it had, placement of its eyes, and shape of its jaw.
The kids learned how to determine the age of a tree and observed different species of trees in the forest.
They got to try their hand at putting out a fake forest fire with real water - that was a favorite!
The students learned about local agriculture and industry - why certain activities are more successful in our region and how they evolved.
Using an interactive 3-D model, cocoa and water, the kids got to see first hand the effects of construction, farming and industry on the watershed.
I truly applaud all of the instructors for being able to present all of this material to the kids using hands on, engaging instruction. It was so cool.
In addition to seeing the creative ways our educators are trying to teach the students, I was able to see how my daughter and her classmates interact with each other. The kids had a chance to get to know me and my daughter really felt special being able to have Mom spend a day in the life of a 4th grader.
The only part of the day I did not like was the school bus ride there and back. But for more on that, you’ll have to check out my entry at Weary Parent - Parenting Teens and Tweens today.
PS - I was also invited to share some parenting advice at Alex Shalman’s blog today - check it out.
August 16, 2007· Filed under Education, Family
Three sets of school supplies purchased. Two backpacks down, one to go. And the little white envelope that generates more anticipation than the Oscar’s in this house has now arrived. Yes, the envelope with the answer to the million dollar question for every child - who will be my teacher - has arrived. And there are smiles all around!!!
It started with a phone call from my daughter’s friend. She was the first to make the announcement that her assignment had arrived and she got the 4th grade teacher we have been hoping for. Then the waiting started. When would our mail arrive? Luckily for me, it was about 15 minutes later and the white envelope was there. My daughter was jumping for joy when she realized that not only did she get the teacher we wanted (the same FABULOUS teacher that my son had for 4th grade), at least one of her friends will be in her class, too. There are only 4 classrooms per grade, so she has a good chance of being with most of her friends anyhow.
My youngest will start Kindergarten and she got a great teacher, too - one that will really challenge her. She wasn’t as excited, but she’ll get there.
Tomorrow will make it T minus 10 days to go back to school. Ready to launch into a new year of excitement, friends, and growing.
Gayla’s kids started back to school today - when do your kids go back to school? And what will you do with all that extra time during the day? My list is long and growing by the day…
June 1, 2007· Filed under Education, Family, Parenting
My blogging pal Randa Clay and I have spent the past few weeks working on a top secret bonus for the subscribers of our other sites - Printables4Kids (mine) and FreeStuff4Kids (Randa’s). The bonus is two different Summer Fun e-Books that you can download, print out, and give to your kids for some brain exercising fun.
By subscribing to FreeStuff4Kids you gain access to the version that is tailored to the younger kids - lots of coloring pages, mazes, easy word searches, and other pencil games. If you subscribe to Printables4Kids you get the version for the older kids with harder word searches, color by number, crossword puzzles, word scrambles and more.
Subscribe to both feeds and you are sure not to miss a single fun activity all summer long - your kids will thank you! Also, don’t miss 30 of the Best Printable Activity Sites for Kids and The Best Free Stuff for Kids of 2007.
May 8, 2007· Filed under Education, Parenting
Tuesday, May 8th is Teacher Appreciation Day, but our childrens’ school takes it and makes a week of it.
Each day of the week has a theme.
Monday you are supposed to send in a piece of fruit to the teacher to give her a healthy start to her week.
Tuesday the kids write notes to their teachers to let them know how loved they are.
Wednesday is for flowers. Children are encouraged to be creative - bring a flower, color a flower, make one out of tissue paper - whatever they like.
Thursday the students are asked to bring their best manners and best behavior. To me, that would be the ultimate gesture of appreciation.
Friday is treat day. The students are encouraged to bring or make a small treat for their teacher. This year I think I will get each teacher a gift card to Starbucks or Panera Bread.
On Thursday the PTA will have a luncheon for the teachers. I will take in my favorite meatball recipe (5lbs meatballs, Heinz chili sauce and grape jelly in the crock pot - it is soooo yummy) and other parents will bring in their favorites, too.
Does your school celebrate Teacher Appreciation Day or Week? How do they tell the teachers that they are truly appreciated?
January 21, 2007· Filed under Education, Family, Parenting
Let me tell you about Gerbie. Oh, and Konnick. And don’t forget their older sister Melty. Now, I know you are scratching your head on this one, but these three characters are members of our family. Really. They are part of my daughter’s imagination and they have been around for three years now. They have been on vacation with us, family outings, daily errands and you really never know when they will pop in. Oh, and never sit on one of them - you will be scolded!!!
These three are not the only imaginary family to live with us. When my son was the same age we had Little Pretend Boy (LPB) living with us. That was his name - and he liked trains and cars, just like my son did. He and his Little Pretend Dad would often follow us in the car.
I have read that having an imaginary friend (or three) is a sign of a creative, gifted mind. When my son first introduced us to LPB, we weren’t sure what to make of it. Afterall, he is our first and we were new to this parenting thing. Little did we know that LPB was just one of many indicators, and that looking back on it all now, we were dealing with a gifted child. He spoke in full concepts/sentences by 18 months, was basically self taught at reading by 5, has since cleaned out the school library, and is very easily bored by repetitive teaching techniques. This highly refined mind had it challenges too - meltdowns over seemingly insignificant things would occur regardless of where we were.
Now that Miss N is 5, her imaginary friends still stop in from time to time, but she has made the distinction. She wanted me to play a game the other day and I just wasn’t in the mood. I asked her to have Gerbie play it with her. She immediately declared that Gerbie was not real and at this moment only a real person would do. While her mind works in a more abstract way than her brother, she exhibits so many of the same personality traits.
My middle child doesn’t have a mind that works that way, so no imaginary friends for her, but she has always been compassionate and understanding of the other two and their wild imaginations. Being an average, bright, athletic, well-rounded child has worked well for her so far.
Does your child have (or had) any imaginary friends? What are they called and are they welcomed into your family, too?
This post was inspired by Michelle’s post Odd Names for Toys - I think her kids would get along just fine with mine!
Tags: imaginary friends, gifted child, family, parenting, education
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